A couple of weeks back we saw a 'leaked Powerpoint presentation' that indicated Intel was readying its first ever Core i9-Series processors. These processors would sport as many as 12 physical cores, and up to 24 threads via Hyperthreading. A table showed that the Core i9-7920X was the top-end Skylake-X processor and it was asserted by the source that we would see many of this processor range launched in June.
Fast forward to last Thursday and a SiSoft Sandra benchmark database entry seemed to confirm one of the lower tier Skylake-X processors had been undergoing some testing. The Core i9-7900X appeared to have been 'confirmed', packing 10C/20T but with a TDP of 175W.
Intel has Core-X 18, 16, and 14-core options
Today, in an exclusive from the leak specialists over at VideoCardz, new slides and info "from multiple sources" assert that Intel's Core X-Series chips will include SKUs with up to 18 cores. In a genuine looking Intel slide you can see above, the first callout box clearly boasts that the upcoming enthusiast processors will offer "More core options: 18, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, and 4."
Other highlighted features of the X-Series include a so-called Rebalanced Intel Smart Cache hierarchy. This will tweak the L1, L2, and L3 cache structure. Intel also trumpets and updated Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0, and an integrated memory controller for up to four channels of DDR4 2666.
Using new data VideoCardz has put together the table above which adds the 18C/36T Core i9-7980XE at the top of the pile. The site also sourced some gaudy (RGB LED illuminated?) boxes for the upcoming X-Series. Please remember to take these rumours with a pinch of salt.
Intel's Computex keynote is scheduled for tomorrow at 2pm Taiwan time (7am here in the UK).
